More information provided for managers’ PERS

Candidates running for the board of the Georgetown Divide Public Utility District and a few readers have written in to complain that the information contained in the article comparing the compensation package of Hank White, general manager of GDPUD, with that of Jim Abercrombie, general manager of the El Dorado Irrigation District was unclear or incorrect.

Subscription Required

Thank you for reading the MtDemocrat.com digital edition. In order to continue reading this story please choose one of the following options.

Current Subscribers
If you are a current subscriber and wish to obtain access to MtDemocrat.com, please select the
Subscriber Verification option below. If you already have a login, please select "Login" at the
lower right corner of this box.

Special Introductory Offer
For a short time we will be offering a discount to those who call us in order to obtain access to
MtDemocrat.com and start your print subscription. Our customer support team will be standing by
Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm to assist you.

Call and Save! (530) 344-5000

If you are not a current subscriber and wish not to take advantage of our special introductory
offer, please select the $12 monthly option below to obtain access to MtDemocrat.com and start
your online subscription

They pointed to information on GDPUD’s Website regarding salary information as evidence for their complaints, with particular emphasis on the amount paid by each district toward their general manager’s retirement.

However, it appears that confusion in how to interpret the salary information on GDPUD’s Website accounts for the misunderstanding.

In EID’s case, the district pays the full employee contribution to PERS for Abercrombie, which is $13,500 a year. In addition they pay $9,881 in Social Security and Medicare taxes for him. EID also pays the employer’s contribution as does any government agency on the Public Employees Retirement System.

In the case of GDPUD, both White and GDPUD pay into PERS. However, according to White, when he retires he won’t receive any portion of the employer-paid fund nor does he have any control over it.

Instead he will draw his retirement from funds he has deposited into PERS until they are depleted. If he dies before his portion of the fund is depleted, his heir receives the balance but none of the employer-paid fund. If he lives past the point where his fund is depleted, he receives pension payments from the Employer Fund until he dies. Since he has no way of knowing if he will ever collect on payments from the Employer-paid Fund, he doesn’t consider it part of his current compensation, although the district still has to show it as an expense.

The same circumstances apply for Abercrombie, though EID pays 100 percent of the employee’s contribution.